


Discovery

by DJE9020



Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: Action/Adventure, Drama, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2002-06-28
Updated: 2002-06-28
Packaged: 2018-10-06 13:41:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10335878
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DJE9020/pseuds/DJE9020
Summary: Spoilers: Possibly anything to do with Sha’re, Skaara, and ShifuSummary: Jack (yes, Jack) makes a discovery, but what does it mean for the team?





	

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Yuma, the archivist: this work was originally archived at [Stargatefan.com](http://fanlore.org/wiki/Stargatefan.com). To preserve the archive, we began manually importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in 2017. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [StargateFan Archive Collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/StargateFan_Archive_Collection).

Discovery

##  Discovery

##### Written by DoggyJO525   
Comments? Write to us at [doggyj0525@yahoo.com](mailto:doggyj0525@yahoo.com)

  * Spoilers: Possibly anything to do with Sha're, Skaara, and Shifu 
  * Summary: Jack (yes, Jack) makes a discovery, but what does it mean for the team? 
  * Ratings: G [D] 



* * *

"'Ruins' would be too optimistic a word, here, I think."  Dr. Daniel Jackson gestured at the screen.  "Although it is quite evident that there was once a thriving civilization, it has obviously been gone for thousands of years.  All that's left is an extensive rubble field, extending for several miles around the Stargate.  If there's anything of value that has survived the climate conditions, it's got to be buried, deep.  It could take years to uncover anything significant.  Archeologically speaking, I don't see that we can gain anything from this planet of immediate use."

General Hammond turned back to the table, where the rest of SG-1 was gathered during this briefing.  "Thank you, Dr. Jackson.  Well, I guess this will strictly be a mineral survey, then, based on the large naquada deposit the UAV detected.  You have a go tomorrow morning.  Better luck next time, Dr. Jackson.  Dismissed."  

They all rose from the table and prepared to leave.  Sam popped the survey tape out of the machine.  "Do you guys mind if I take this to look over again?"  No one disagreed, and they all left to get ready for tomorrow's mission.

Later that afternoon, Daniel peered around the door into Sam's lab.  "Hey, Sam.  You still in here?"

Sam looked up from a corner of the room.  "Over here.  I'm just making sure we have everything.  You ready to go?"

"Yeah, I've got my stuff packed.  Not that I'm really going to need anything on this trip.  I'm just planning on taping what I can of the ruins, see if there's any clues to what happened.  Although, actually, I do have a theory.  That's what I came to see you about.  

Could you look at that fly-over tape with me again?"

Several hours later, Col. Jack O'Neill could be heard bellowing down the hallway.  "Carter, Daniel!  You guys down there?"

"In here, Colonel."  Sam called back.  She sat back from the video monitor where she and Daniel had been huddled for last two hours, stretching her back.  Daniel took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes.

"What are you kids doing?  It's 1800 already.  Aren't we going out to eat our last chance at real food for the coming week?  Come on, Teal'c and I are starving."

Jack sauntered into the lab, frowning at the two errant scientists.  Teal'c followed silently.

"Oh, is it that late already?  Daniel had an idea about the planet, and I think he's right.  This could really explain a lot of things.  Here, let me rewind it and show you what.."

"Ah, no.  No rewinding, no showing.  We'll be there tomorrow.  Morning.  Early.  With only MRE's to sustain us through the long, lonely hours.  Food, now.  You can explain over dinner."

Sam and Daniel exchanged glances.  They both knew that if they didn't feed Col. O'Neill, soon, they would have no hope of getting him to pay any attention to them or their findings.

Sam's meatball crashed into her spaghetti.  "So, an asteroid, see, would leave an impact crater, like this, and then push up the surrounding area into this horseshoe shape, kind of like this."  She took her fork and pushed her spaghetti to one side of her plate.  She broke a breadstick into three pieces and set them upright, then pushed them over.  "And the buildings in the area, depending on how big the asteroid was, would be destroyed by the blast, like this."

"Major, are you going to eat, or just play with your food all night?"  Jack frowned at Sam.  As far as he was concerned, she was just wasting perfectly good spaghetti.

"Wait, Jack."  Daniel said.  He took his fork, and pulled some of Sam's spaghetti back over the meatball.  "And then, if that asteroid was rich in naquada, that would explain why there was such a high reading from that one specific area when the geological conditions really don't support the formation of it there.  Because over time, the crater would be filled in and covered over, the way the wind and sand blows there."

"See?"  Sam uncovered her meatball and popped it into her mouth.

The wormhole whooshed open, and they all turned to look at the control room where General Hammond stood.  He leaned forward and keyed the mike.  "SG-1, you have a go.  Good luck."

"Come on, kids. Let's go get that meatball."  Jack didn't look back as he stepped through the wormhole, followed closely by Teal'c.  Sam and Daniel exchanged a smile, then shook their heads and followed.  Up in the control room, General Hammond turned to the others present.  "Did he say `meatball'?"

Part 2

The wind pushed and tugged at them as they stepped out onto the platform.  Although they had known it would be windy from the MALP readings, that hadn't really prepared them for the reality of the dust and debris swirling around them.  They all ducked their heads and Teal'c put his hand up to try to shield his unprotected scalp.  

They all quickly put on their goggles, as Daniel rooted around in his backpack.  He came up with several head wraps that he passed around.  Teal'c quickly wound his around his head and face, nodding his thanks to Daniel.  Daniel then covered his head and face with one, just leaving an area around his goggles, and helped Sam with hers.  Jack took one, but just tied it around the lower half of his face, like a bandana.

"Let's go, campers."  Jack had to shout to be heard over the wind.  They tucked their heads low and headed out across the ruined city.  

Several hours later, they were all exhausted.  Not only did they have to battle the wind for every step, they had to pick their way carefully over the broken bits and pieces of buildings, frequently climbing over piles of debris.  Conversation had proved impossible while they were moving.  Jack led them to a fairly sheltered area beneath what once might have been a wall, and signaled for a rest stop.

The wall provided some respite from the wind, and they gratefully sank down, immediately reaching for canteens to sooth dry, parched throats.  Jack scowled at the group.  "Whose idea was this, anyway?"  He glowered at Daniel.

"Not me," Daniel said quickly.  "I can't even get the camcorder out, with this wind.  It must have been Sam's"

"Not my idea, Sir.  Mineral surveys are SG16's job.  But since they're all recovering from that gas on P28-637, someone else must have volunteered us for this job on the grounds that we hadn't had an easy in-and-out mission in quite some time and the rest would do us good.  Sir."

Jack turned to Teal'c.  "Do not even look to me, O'Neill.  I hate the wind."  The Jaffe did indeed look miserable, for the first time in Jack's memory.

"Okay, okay.  Let's just get this over with.  Up and at-`em."  Jack climbed wearily to his feet, followed slowly by the rest of his team.

They worked their way through the ruins, heading generally downhill.  Once they were free of the debris field, the wind seemed to fall off a bit.  The land reminded Jack of the high desert country of the American southwest.  Stunted trees grew not more that five or six feet high, all leaning with the prevailing wind.  Scattered about were scrub bushes, and something that resembled a cactus, but with no thorns.  Jack didn't guess there would be that much animal life to graze on anything out here, although he did begin to notice some holes about two or three inches across that might be something's underground burrow.  An eerie cry came to them on the wind, and they all stopped and looked up.  A shadow passed over them, but was quickly gone, some flying creature that was riding the thermals.

As the weak sun began to set, they reached their destination.  The land fell off more sharply here, and they realized they were at the lip of the possible crater in the area that had been pinpointed by the UAV.  The wind seemed to fall off as the sun sank toward the horizon, allowing the land to cool.

Teal'c scanned the area, then pointed.  "There, O'Neill.  I believe those are the trees the UAV showed.  They are somewhat larger than those around us, and there should be a small stream nearby."  

"Good eyes, Teal'c.  Heads up, we're almost home."

Another half-hour of walking brought them to the trees Teal'c had spotted.  The UAV had been correct in its readings, and there was a small stream winding through the trees and falling away into the crater.  They followed it down the to bottom, and found a small pool that had formed, surrounded by trees.

"Well, now.  This looks cozy.  What do you say?"  Jack looked around.

"Looks fine to me," Daniel sank down wearily, leaning back against a tree trunk.

"I'll test the water, but it looks good to me, too."  Sam said.  She set down her pack, and dug out her water testing kit, then went to get a sample.

Teal'c had been walking around the area, looking for signs that anyone or anything had been there recently.  "There are several small prints near the pool from some type of animal, but nothing larger than the size of one of your cats.  I believe it is safe, and well sheltered from the wind."

Part 3

The next morning, they got an early start.  No one wanted to stay around in that wind any longer than they had too.  Sam came back from the pool, and reached into her backpack.  She pulled out a small tube and squeezed some of the contents onto her hand.  "Hey, you guys want any lotion?  You'll get wind burn if you don't put some on."  

"Yeah, I'll take some."  Daniel reached out his hand.  Jack stared.  Daniel looked at him.  "What?"  Jack just snorted and turned away, then looked back at Sam.  He sighed, and held out his hand for some lotion.  Sam did a much better job of not smiling than Daniel did.

The sun rose in the sky bringing the wind with it, although it wasn't as bad as on the higher elevations.  Sam and Daniel took her sample cases and headed off into the crater to begin.  Teal'c scouted around the area, getting a feel for the land.  Jack wandered around, convinced there was nothing remotely threatening about this planet other than that damned aggravating wind.  Spying a fist-sized rock on the ground, he kicked it.  It traveled a satisfying distance before settling into its new home.  Jack spied another innocent rock, and kicked that one, too.  Wow, at least 15 feet further than the last one.  

He began to look for another likely candidate.  His eye lit on one buried slightly in the ground.  He went over and studied it for a moment, trying to get the best angle for a mighty boot.  He drew back his leg and let fly.  "Ow, damn, son of a bitch!"  Jack grabbed his foot and hopped about on one leg.  So much for steel-toed boots.  Jack stared at the offending rock, which had not budged.  Now it was personal. 

He pushed at the rock with his foot.  It didn't move.  He got down and tried to pry it out with his fingers, but it must have been buried deeper than he thought.  Jack stared at the rock, then looked closer.  There was something about it, something he could not quite put his finger on.

"Well, if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed it.  Colonel Jack O'Neill, USAF, looking at a rock."  Daniel's sarcastic voice right behind him made Jack jump about a foot.

"Hey, that's artifact to you, buddy."

"Really?"  Daniel's sarcastic demeanor vanished abruptly, and he dropped down to his knees, examining the rock closely.

"No, not really.  It's just a rock."

"It does look a little different then the others here.  It's darker, maybe a different type then the others in the area.  Odd."  Daniel poked at the rock.

"Yeah, its bigger than I thought at first, I was going to dig it out. and show it to you. but it just keeps getting bigger under there."  Jack sat back, somewhat embarrassed to have brought so much attention to himself and that damned rock.  His toe throbbed.

Daniel reached down in his backpack.  He pulled out a magnifying glass, a small digging trowel, and a brush.  "Sam, take a look at that.   What do you think?"

Sam took the magnifying glass from him and peered closely at the rock.  "Hmm, it looks smoother, somehow.  And you're right, it is darker.  Let me see."

Sam reached for a hammer and chisel while Daniel began digging out around the rock.  It looked like it was just getting bigger and bigger.  Sam placed the chisel on the rock to chip off a small piece.   She struck the chisel with the hammer, but the hammer bounced back and the chisel slid off the rock, causing Sam to fall forward and scrape her hand on the top of the rock.  "Ow!"  Sam exclaimed.  "That hurt."  She examined the scrape on her hand, then looked back at the rock.  "That's a lot harder than it should be, a lot harder."

"And a lot bigger.  I think this is the top of something, buried under here.  It may be the asteroid.  I think we've found it!" Daniel said excitedly.

"'We?'  What's this `we' stuff.  I found it," Jack stated.  "Does this mean I get to name it?"

Sam and Daniel got up, ignoring Jack.  They were already deep into a discussion about how they could excavate enough of it to possibly get a sample.  Sam was listing possibilities for blasting a piece off as she and Daniel walked back toward camp.

"Hey, what about me?  I might name it after you, you know," Jack called out after them.  "But then again, why should I, when you ignore me like this?"  Jack limped after his departing teammates.

Part 4

The next day they began excavating in earnest.   They each carried a little camp shovel that Daniel assured them would be sufficient to get started with.  

"We're not going to dig the whole thing out.  I doubt that we could.  We're just going to try to get enough access that we can get a good chunk out for testing."

They moved dirt all morning, but the object under the ground just got bigger and bigger.  Finally, Jack called a halt for lunch.

"Well, kids.  I've enjoyed about all of this I can stand.  Let's step back and see what we've got."

They moved away, looking at the area they had excavated from a distance, to get some more perspective on it.

"Is it just me, or does that look way too regular to be a rock?" Jack asked.

"It does seem to have a symmetrical shape to it," Sam agreed.

"Oh, my God!"  Daniel exclaimed.  "It's a pyramid.  Look at it.  The top has been sheared off, and it's sitting at an angle, but look at the sides.  There's no telling how deep it is."  He wiped his hands on his pants and moved back toward the object.

Daniel walked around it two or three times, than headed back toward camp.  

"Hey, where you going?  Daniel?" Jack called futilely after him. "Well, there he goes again.  Let's go after him.  Teal'c, when we get to camp you sit on him and I'll make lunch."

As they approached the camp, they met Daniel heading back toward the dig site carrying his backpack.

"Whoa, whoa.  Slow down there, pard'ner." Jack said. "You're heading the wrong direction.  Lunch is that-a-way."

"Yeah, I'll be back in a few minutes, there's something I've got to check out.  You guys go ahead and start without me."  Daniel started to move away.  Jack looked at Teal'c, who moved in front of Daniel, blocking his way.

"Oh, excuse me."  Daniel hardly looked up, just tried to sidestep Teal'c.  When Teal'c moved with him, again blocking his way, Daniel did look up.  Then he looked at Jack.

"Is it the correct time for me to sit on DanielJackson, O'Neill?" Teal'c questioned.

"It is indeed, Teal'c."

"Jack?"

"Daniel?  Lunch first, play later.  But if you get grumpy, I'm gonna make you take your afternoon nap before you go out and play again."

"But, I've got."

"Daniel, that rock has been there a long, long time.  It's not going anywhere.  We'll have lunch, and then head back.  That's it."

Daniel looked longingly toward the site, then sighed and turned around.  While Jack and Teal'c had been corralling Daniel, Sam had gone on to the campsite.  She had collected some water and had dropped the purifying tablets in.  Now she had the fire going and was sorting through the packs of MRE's.

"See, Mom has lunch almost ready for us.  We'll be back at the playground in no time."  Jack sat down and selected his meal.

Daniel sorted through the packs.  "Mom, why can't I just have peanut butter and jelly like the rest of the kids?"

"You ate all the PBJ, Daniel.  Now be a good boy and eat your whatever that is.  What did you have to come back for, anyway?" Sam asked.

"Well, I've got some cleaning stuff here that will clear away the dirt and grime, but won't hurt any underlying surface features, provided they are mostly metal based.  And this seems to have a high metal content, not just a stone facing, like on the pyramids on earth.  I'm going to see if there's anything there."

After lunch, they cleaned up quickly, then headed back to the site.  Daniel walked around the object again, then chose a likely spot.  The rest of the team crowded around him.  He pulled on some protective gloves, then got a brush and a jar of clear liquid out of his pack.  Carefully opening the jar, he dipped the brush in and began to clean the area.  He washed the residue off with some water from his canteen, then brushed some more.

"Ah, see.  I think there is something here!"  The light of discovery shone from his eyes.  "It appears to be writing, I can't really tell."  He continued to clean and rinse the area.

Peering closely at the surface, he gasped, then stepped back.  "Oh, my god. I don't believe it."  He looked stunned.

"What is it?"  Jack looked at the surface with alarm.  What could have caused Daniel to react so strongly?

Daniel gestured toward the object.  "Teal'c, check me on this.  Is that what I think it is?"

Teal'c stepped very close to the surface, and peered at the cleaned area Daniel had been working on.

"I believe so, DanielJackson."  Teal'c looked solemnly at Daniel.

"It's a mothership."  Daniel said.  "It must have crashed here, oh, I don't know, maybe two or three thousand years ago. judging by the conditions of the ruins."

"A mothership?  Are you sure?" Jack asked, incredulously.

"I'm sure.  This is Gou'ald writing.  It says `Access panel 7.  Open carefully.  Authorized personnel only.'"

Part 5

Dinner had been seasoned with speculation on the mothership, who it had belonged to, when it had crashed, and whether that had led to the extinction of the civilization through climatic changes or Gou'ald invasion.  They only thing clear was that this was a major find, one that would take years to uncover and explore.

Daniel volunteered to take first watch, since he was much to excited to sleep.  Also, he wanted to get all his impressions down in his journal while they were still fresh in his mind.  He sat by the fire writing as everyone else settled down.

Several hours later, Jack awoke with a start.  He had the feeling he had overslept, and checking his watch confirmed that.  Jack crawled out of his sleeping bag with a worried frown on his face.  Daniel should have woken him up about an hour and a half ago to take his watch.

Jack emerged carefully from his tent, listening and looking for anything out of the ordinary for the camp.  The only thing he could see was the campfire that had burned low, and Daniel sitting beside it, staring into the embers.  Jack knew that look, and it never meant anything good.  Sighing, Jack wondered what demons were haunting Daniel this time.

Yawning loudly, Jack made a show of stretching and grunting.   Daniel started, and looked around guiltily.  "Hey, Daniel, thanks for letting me sleep a little longer, but all that did was give me more time to stiffen up.  Aren't you tired from all that work today?"

"Oh, sorry, Jack."  Daniel checked his watch quickly.  "I guess I kind of got lost in my thoughts, and didn't notice the time.  Um, but no, I'm not really tired."  A fleeting smile crossed his face.  "That's the kind of work I like, you know."

"Yeah, you would."  Jack went to the fire and sat down beside Daniel, checking the coffeepot.  Full, as usual.  Trust Daniel to remember the important things.

They sat in silence for a few moments.  Jack wanted to give Daniel the chance to bring up any issues that might be bothering him, but as the silence stretched on, Jack decided this was one of those times he would have to coax it out of him.

"Wow, quite a day, huh?  Wonder who'll get the job of digging that mother . ship out?"

Daniel threw his cold coffee on the ground.  "Well, I guess it won't be me.  Never is," he added bitterly.

Jack regarded Daniel carefully.  "That would be a really long-term assignment, wouldn't it?  How long do you think it would take to uncover?"

"Oh, years, easily.  I mean, look how long people have been digging in Egypt, and they're still uncovering new sites every day, practically.  That's at least a lifetime's work, if not several lifetimes."

"So," Jack began slowly, "even if it was you, you probably wouldn't get to finish the project anyway, right?"

"Jack, it's not about finishing the project.  It's about the work, the project itself.  At least, we could get to some access port, or doorway, and start exploring the interior.  Just imagine what we might find!  Well, not `we', of course.  `We' are not an archeological team."

"No, we're not, are we."  Jack sighed.  He had been afraid of this.  "Daniel, do ever want to go back to that, sometimes?  I mean, more of the archeological side of things, or whatever you call it?"

Daniel toyed with his empty cup, staring off into the darkness, away from Jack.  Finally, he said, "I think about it all the time, Jack.  That's all I ever wanted to do, all I ever wanted to be.  On earth, of course, in the beginning.  But, now, with everything that's happened.  Sometimes I just feel like I'm losing myself.  I don't know who, or what, I am anymore."

"We all change, Daniel.  That's the nature of time, and of life.  We grow up, we grow old, we grow away sometimes.  We're almost never who we start out to be.  Sometimes, we're not even who we really thought we were."  Jack refilled his and Daniel's coffee cups.

"You know, Jack, these past few years have been some of the best and worst of my life, all at the same time. I feel like I got sucked into the Twilight Zone.  And now, now all this seems almost normal to me, and that scares me.  First, I got into all this because I needed the money, then I met Sha're, and all the rest that came after that.  Now, Sha're is at peace, Skaara is free, and Shifu is safe.  What's left for me to do?"

"Well, there's the team, for starters.  You're a part of us, and we're a part of you.  Is that going to be enough for you?"

"Oh, god, Jack.  Don't put it that way.  You guys, you have been my best friends, and my family.  Especially you.  You've been my mentor, and father figure, big brother, favorite uncle, whatever, you've been there. I've never had a friend like you, and you mean more to me than I can ever tell you.  But, lately, I've felt like I'm fading away and losing myself.  Like the team is leaving me behind.  Do you see what I mean?  The longer I stay with SG1 and the kind of assignments we draw, the further away I get from myself."

Jack smiled sadly.  "You sound like a kid who's getting ready to leave home."  He sighed, again.  "I knew this day would come, eventually.  Not to sound cold and calculating, but from a military standpoint, this organization is not using you to the best of your abilities.  You're right, you would be more valuable, and probably happier, leading an archeological team. And, as long as you stay with the SGC, and what else would you do?, we can still get together and talk.  Hell, you'd probably be reading my reports and leading the follow up explorations."

"Jack, I." Daniel stopped, unable to continue.  He took a deep breath, and tried again.  "I haven't made any decisions, yet."

"Yes, you have, Daniel.  You just don't know it yet.  Don't worry, you'll be fine.  I, for one, think you're making the right move.  Now, go get some sleep, you've stayed up way past your bedtime."

Daniel nodded.  He started to head toward his tent, then turned back.  "Jack, don't say anything to anyone else yet.  When I make up my mind, I'll talk to Sam and Teal'c about it, personally."

Jack nodded, then turned back to the fire, and got another cup of coffee. He had a feeling he would be up the rest of the night, now.

In the shadows, Teal'c took a deep cleansing breath.  The proper state of kel-no-reem would be difficult to achieve this night.

Sam turned over in her tent, wiping a tear off her cheek.

**The End**

  


* * *

>   
>  © May 2002. The characters mentioned in this story are the property of Showtime and Gekko Film Corp.  
> The Stargate, SG-I, the Goa'uld and all other characters  
> who have appeared in the series STARGATE SG-1 together with the names,   
> titles and backstory are the sole copyright property of MGM-UA Worldwide Television, Gekko Film Corp, Glassner/Wright Double Secret Productions and Stargate SG-I Prod. Ltd. Partnership. This fanfic is not intended as an infringement upon those rights and   
> solely meant for entertainment. All other characters, the story idea and the story itself are the sole property of the author.   
> 

* * *

  



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